Elon Musk denies James Murdoch in the lead to replace him as Tesla chairman

UpdatedOctober 11, 2018 — 5.44pmfirst published at 8.51am

Elon Musk has denied a report in the Financial Times that James Murdoch is poised to replace him as chairman of Tesla.

Murdoch, the outgoing 21st Century Fox chief executive and a Tesla board member, was the lead candidate to replace Musk as Tesla chairman, the FT reported on Wednesday, citing two people briefed on the discussions.

"This is incorrect," Musk tweeted in response, without elaborating.

James Murdoch was reported to be at the front of the queue to replace Elon Musk as Tesla chairman.Credit:Bloomberg

Elon Musk agreed to step down as Tesla chair in a deal with the SEC. Credit:AP

While the latter cited a lack of relevant experience and a "troubled history as an executive and director," Glass Lewis warned that Murdoch already served on too many boards.

According to the FT report, external options were still being considered.

Murdoch is set to be succeeded by his brother Lachlan Murdoch as Twenty First Century Fox chief executive, after the media group completes the sale of bulk of its assets to Walt Disney.

Murdoch could not immediately be reached for comment. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Twenty-First Century Fox declined to comment.

Musk has 45 days to step down as chairman of Tesla under the SEC settlement and is not permitted to be re-elected to the post for three years. Tesla is also required to appoint two new independent directors to its board.

With US stock markets broadly lower, shares of Tesla pared losses to trade down 1.6 per cent at $US258.50.